Headstart in dealing with e-waste
Published on: Thursday, September 21, 2017
Penampang: The district police headquarters here became the first in Sabah to implement the proper Electric and Electronic Waste (e-waste) disposal system enforced by the Environmental Department.Sabah Police Criminal Investigation Department Deputy Chief ACP Jauteh Dikun said the physical exhibits of previous crime cases, from 2002 to 2014, will be passed to a licensed contractor under the Environmental Department and shipped off to disposal sites in the peninsula or Sarawak.Jauteh hoped other district police offices would also implement the new system. ADVERTISEMENT Previously, all disposals of crime exhibits were done manually, whereby the items were left in an area before the agencies involved (MACC, JKR, etc.) came in and took over."However, now, with the assistance of the State Environmental Department, a more systematic e-waste disposal practice has been introduced," he said."This new technique will ease the burden of the police in managing crime exhibits as these items face huge damage risks if kept for too long. "The seizure of crime exhibits come in mass proportions, thus this new procedure resolves storage problems for the police," he added.ADVERTISEMENT The to-be disposed crime exhibits from IPD Penampang comprised 686 online gambling computers, 60 gambling machines and cash amounting to RM23,926.90. The money will be handed over to the State Treasury.Jauteh urged fellow officers to think of alternative means to dispose of other crime exhibits such as vehicles and past investigation papers.
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He also urged senior officers to conduct routine checks on the crime exhibits, at least once a month, to ensure all items are up to date.Meanwhile, State Environmental Director YM Tunku Khalkausar Tunku Fathahi said the reason her department emphasises on proper e-waste disposal is because when these wastes are not handled appropriately, they could pollute our environment and severely affect the wellbeing of the people."It will also be easier for us to dismantle the e-waste and retrieve recyclable components from them if they are disposed by licensed contractors," she said.This disposal system also eases tracking activities of e-waste to be done by the department.Khalkausar commended the Penampang district office for maintaining the condition of the exhibits and making it easier for her department to recycle valuable components from the e-waste such as gold, silver, bronze and copper components.E-waste should be disposed according to the Environment Quality Regulations 2005 (Scheduled Disposal) under the Environment Quality Act 1974 through licensed/authorised contractors.Currently, Sabah dos not have the facilities to support this practice (e-waste recovery) and that is why all e-waste from the State is being sent to Sarawak or the peninsula. There is only a storage unit here in the State for this waste.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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E-waste in Sabah amounted to 57.685 metric tonnes last year and cost around RM5,000 per container to ship the waste off to Sarawak of the peninsula. Hence, it would be better for Sabah to have its own e-waste disposal facility.Also present were Penampang Police Chief DSP Rosley Hobden, Penampang Criminal Investigation Department Chief ASP Rajendran Yalamalai and owner of NCT Forwarding & Shipping Co (licensed company for e-waste shipping), Ng Vui Chuan. - Iffah Dilaney